Calais is seeking authorisation to turn the city into a duty-free zone in a bid to lure British shoppers following Brexit  if a future trade deal between Britain and the EU heralds a return of trade tariffs.

Mayor Natacha Bouchart anticipates Britain’s planned exit from the EU’s single market will revive the cross-Channel ‘booze cruises’ that saw Britons in the 1980s and 1990s day-trip to Calais to buy cheap cigarettes, beer and wine on board ferries.

“Our mayor is fighting for the whole town of Calais to benefit from the same duty-free rules as the ferries,” said Philippe Mignonet, one of Bouchart’s deputies.

The fortunes of Calais rely on the smooth flow of people and goods across the English Channel. The mayor’s initiative reflects the growing doubts in the town over whether a future trade deal will maintain the single market’s zero-tariff, friction-free movement of goods across the Britain-EU border.

Calais authorities were also exploring the option of tax rebates that would allow visiting Britons to reclaim VAT on hotel stays and restaurant meals, Mignonet said, a move aimed at encouraging them to spend more time and money in the town.

EU rules allow private individuals to carry unlimited amounts of alcohol and cigarettes across the bloc’s internal borders provided they are not for resale.

But after Britain ended its 47-year membership of the EU on Friday, it now has until Dec. 31, 2020, to negotiate a trade accord that will determine what tariffs, if any, Britain and the EU levy on each other’s goods, and caps to duty-free commerce.

 

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